Shipping container



L. MAYER SHIPPING CONTAINER Nov. 24, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May 28, 1962 INVENTOR. LO U l '5 M AYER ATTORNEYS Nov. 24, 1964 L. MAYER 3,158,307

SHIPPING CONTAINER Filed May 28, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

' LOKMS MYER BY 01-? Md 4/)% /412K ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,153,307 SHEPING CONTAINER Louis Mayer, Eimhurst, N.Y., assignor to Owens-Illinois Glass (Iompany, a corporation of Ohio Filed May 28, 1962, Ser. No. 198,344

1 Claim. (6!. 22914) This invention relates to a shipping container, and more particularly to a shipping container having interpacking for packaging an article.

In the conventional practice of packaging articles for shipment, interpacking is provided to protect the article and maintain it in spaced relation from the side Wall and ends of the shipping container. Interpacking while it is a necessary packaging item has many undesirable features. For example, it greatly increases the number of items the packager must keep in his inventory. Each piece of interpacking is frequently unique and requires a separate die cutting operation thereby increasing the cost of manufacture for a particular package and the ultimate cost to the consumer.

Accordingly, it is an object of this invention to provide a shipping package which maintains the packaged article from the side wall of the shipping container and requires a minimum of interpacking.

Another object of this invention is to provide an inexpensive shipping container having integral interpacking for maintaining a packaged article from the side wall of the container.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings Wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example, the preferred embodiment of this invention.

In the drawings:

FIG. 1 is a top plan view of a paperboard blank used to form the container of this invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view, partly broken away, showing an assembled container of this invention and the outline of an article packaged therein; and

FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing the interpacking of the container of this invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the container of this invention is preferably formed from a sheet of foldable sheet-like material, such as corrugated paperboard. The blank 10, from which the preferred embodiment of the container of this invention is erected, is a single sheet of corrugated paperboard which has been slotted and scored to form a series of foldably connected panels. The blank it comprises four side wall panels 11, 12, 13 and 14 foldably connected along score lines 15. Each of the side wall panels has a closure flap 16 foldably connected thereto along a score line 17. The closure flaps extend alternatively from the side panels, so that the closure flaps for an adjacent pair of side wall panels are opposite each other. Each of the side wall panels has an interpacking panel 18 foldaoly attached thereto along a score line 19, opposite its respective closure panel. Each of the interpacking panels 18 is divided into siX, equally wide subpanels 20 by transverse score lines 21.

Referring to FIG. 2, the container of this invention is erected by folding the side wall panels into an open ended tubular configuration and securing them together by means of a length of tape 22. The interpacking panels 18 are reversely folded along the score lines 21 and arranged to form corner pads having a generally L-shaped cross-section. See FIG. 3. In the packaging of a rectangular article or parallelepiped the bottom closure flaps are inwardly folded to close the lower end of the container. The lower interpacking panels 18 are folded to place four of the subpanels 20 into parallel relationship with the bottom closure flaps 16. The remaining subpanels or outer two subpanels are folded to place them in parallel relation with their associated side wall panel (see FIG. 3). The interpacking panels 18 are arranged so as to be attached to oppositely disposed side wall panels when the side wall panels are folded into a tubular configuration. A parallelepiped-shaped article is then placed within the container. By the method described hereinbefore, the interpacking panels at the upper end of the container are folded to place four of the subpanels parallel with the upper end of the parallelepiped and two of the subpanels between the side wall panel and the side of the parallepiped. The top closure flaps 16 are then inwardly folded to close the upper end of the container and are then taped or stitched to secure them 1 in a conventional manner.

It will be noted that the bottom pair of interpacking panels maintains the packaged article in spaced relation from the bottom closure flaps and form their associated pair of side wall panels. The interpacking panels located at the upper end of the container maintain the parallelepiped in spaced relation from the top closure flaps and form their pair of associated side panels. Inasmuch as each pair of interpacking panels is arranged on a different pair of side wall panels, the article is suspended out of contact with the side walls of the container, thereby providing a maximum amount of protection. The article is likewise suspended or spaced from the top and bottom of the container.

Various modifications may be resorted to without de parting from the scope of this invention. For example, the number of subpanels may be modified so as to provide whatever thicknesses of material between the article and the container that may be desired.

Likewise, the interpacking panels at one end of the container may be arranged on an adjacent pair of side wall panels and the interpacking panels at the other end of the container may be arranged on the remaining pair of side wall panels.

It will of course, be understood that various details of construction may be modified through a wide range without departing from the principles of this invention, and it is not, therefore, the purpose to limit the patent granted hereon otherwise than necessitated by the scope of the appended claim.

I claim:

A shipping container for packaging a parallelepiped shaped article comprising four side wall panels foldably connected together into a tubular configuration, said side Wall panels surrounding but spaced from the sides of said article, top closure flaps foldably connected to the upper edges of said side Wall panels and arranged to close the upper end of said tubular configuration, bottom closure flaps foldably connected to the lower edges of said tubular configuration, said bottom closure flaps arranged to close the lower end of said tubular configuration, said closure flaps being spaced from the ends of said article to be packaged, a pair of flaps foldably attached to one of the opposed pair of said side wall panels, transverse, parallel score lines on each of said pair of flaps forming it into at least four foldably connected subpanels so I 1 3,158,307 3 4 that, when folded, plural subpanels are dispQSed be- References Cited in the file of this patent tween their said side wall panels and the article to be V packaged and other plural subpanels are disposed between UNITED STATES PATENTS said top closure flaps and said article, a second pair of 1,852,832 Beaman Apr. 5, 1932 flaps foldably attached to the other opposed pair of said 5 2,013,346 Gomes Sept 3,, 1935 side Wall panels, transverse, parallel score lines on each 2,031,254 Feb 18, 1936 of said pair of flaps forming it into at least four foldaoly 23981404 Brooks Apt 16, 1946 connected subpanels so that, when folded, plural sub- 7 0 panels are disposed between their said side wall panel and a i i 3 said article and other subpanels are disposed between said 10 00m bottom closure flaps and said article. 

